The GPRS has been developed to communicate internet packets via a radio access interface. A GPRS network can be formed using a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) or a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) backbone network. GPRS provides support for packet-orientated services and attempts to optimise network and radio resources for packet data communications such as for example Internet Packets (IP). The GPRS provides a logical architecture, which is related to the circuit switched architecture of a mobile radio system.
In GPRS/UMTS networks, each mobile user equipment needs to set up at least one GPRS/UMTS communications session represented by packet data protocol (PDP) Context, to send and receive data. Each GPRS/UMTS session is specific to the mobile, user equipment. As such a mobile user equipment must use its own specific PDP context to send and receive data. In addition, the PDP Context is specific to the type of internet packet data which the mobile user equipment sends through the GPRS/UMTS communications session. There are three different types of PDP Contexts, depending on the type of internet protocol connectivity, which the mobile user equipment has established.                Point-to-point protocol type        Internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) type        Internet protocol version 6 (IPv6) type        
This internet protocol version specific PDP Context means that a mobile user equipment must set up an IPv4 type of PDP context if it intends to send IPv4 internet packets across the GPRS/UMTS network. Similarly a mobile user equipment must set up an IPv6 type of PDP Context if it is to send and receive IPv6 internet packets across the GPRS/UMTS networks. This can cause an inefficient use of communications resources on the packet radio network.